Those who have agreed to be interviewed by Mueller's investigators, the Post reported , include Dan Coats , director of national intelligence; Mike Rogers, head of the National Security Agency; and Richard Ledgett, who recently left his role as Rogers' deputy.

Yet, at least initially, he holstered his Twitter finger and publicly said nothing. Rosenstein is the only person who has the authority to fire Mueller because Attorney General Jeff Sessions recused himself from the investigation. Following his decision in April to give Mattis authority to decide troop levels in Iraq and Syria, Trump extended that authority to the war in Afghanistan on Tuesday, The New York Times reports .

Trump was forced to fire Flynn in February after he misled the White House about his contacts with Russian officials a year ago as a member of Trump's transition team. Rosenstein said he would agree to dismiss Mueller only if there were a legitimate basis to do so, and an order from the president would not necessarily qualify.

Tillerson said the policy reversal came as a result of pressure applied during President Donald Trump's recent visit to the Middle East , which included a meeting with PA President Mahmoud Abbas , as well as a meeting earlier in May during Abbas's visit to the White House.

Congressman Steve Scalise underwent surgery after being shot in the hip and remained in critical condition, according to MedStar Washington Hospital Centre. Rep. Jeff Duncan said in a statement that he was at the practice and said "saw the shooter". Some used the shooting to call for additional gun-control legislation (as is always the case), while others pointed to the fact good guys with guns stopped a bad guy with a gun from creating a bloodbath.

The MedStar Washington Hospital Center said Mr Scalise had suffered fractured bones, internal organ injuries and severe bleeding after he was shot in the left hip. James Hodgkinson , the 66-year-old man who shot and injured a US Congressman yesterday had been in the Alexandria (US) area since March and was living out of his vehicle.

Japanese shares fell slightly in choppy trade as the yen's strength pressured exporters and an overnight drop in U.S. Treasury yields dragged down financial stocks. HONG KONG: The Hong Kong Monetary Authority raised interest rates after the Fed's move, to help keep the territory's currency at a stable rate against the USA dollar.

The Belleville News-Democrat reported, "The shooter was James T. Hodgkinson of Belleville, who belonged to a number of anti-Republican groups, including one called 'Terminate the Republican Party'". Members of Congress were practicing for a game that was scheduled for Thursday night at Nationals Park. The shooting took place just after 7.00am (6.00pm Singapore time) as the Republican team practiced for the well-loved charity showdown.

Talks with the DUP to secure her government broke up on Tuesday night without an agreement, but Mrs May said the discussions had been "productive". Before travelling to London , Foster on Monday said her party would go into the talks "with the national interest at heart".

All that seems to undermine the rationale for Comey's firing that Sessions says he relied on - Rosenstein's memo that charged Comey acted inappropriately in the handling of the Clinton email investigation. "I do not", Sessions said when asked whether he knows whether the president records his conversations. "I understand that Jim Comey expressed his misgivings about being in that meeting alone".

Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr, R-N.C., and Sen. In the letter to Comey, Trump said the firing was necessary to restore "public trust and confidence" in the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Trump's decision to fire Comey, a move recommended by Sessions despite having already recused himself from the Russian Federation probe, prompted critics to charge that the president was trying to interfere with a criminal investigation.

The first time Trump said he accepted the findings of the intelligence agencies was at a January 11 news conference ahead of his inauguration. Recently, members of the right-wing media began suggesting the president fire Robert Mueller , the special counsel tasked with investigating the Trump campaign's relationship with Russian Federation.